ON THE NET:

The Tsunami Hazard Information Service, which took about a year to develop, is the first in the nation, he said.

Typing in a specific address brings up the pertinent map, Stein said. Rural or neighbor island locations that don't have street-by-street Google maps still can search by areas of an island, he said.

One advantage of the new system is that as new studies are done of coastal areas and the maps revised, they can be posted online.

Until now, the public had to use maps published in phone books. Phone books will continue to contain the information, which is updated yearly.

Project partners included state and local planning and civil defense officials, plus the Red Cross and other disaster relief agencies, Stein said. "All the contributors made it what it is -- a one-stop shop for the whole state of Hawaii," he said.